#For-goodness-sake
For-goodness-sake! We’ve all either heard this or said this before. It is an adverb used to express frustration. Deborah and I always share that we feel more attacked by Satan on our posting weeks than ever before. There have been a few days this week where For-goodness-sake may have been in my vocabulary. I really didn’t’ think I had anything good to share with you all today and then I went for a much needed 5 mile run on Thursday.
As I ran past this recently cut field, I thought of how broken I felt. Just as there were broken trees and limbs, I was feeling broken inside. It was not long and the song, “Graves into Gardens” by Elevation played on my Pandora. Some of the lyrics sing; “Cause the God of the mountain is the God of the valley” and “You turn mourning to dancing. You give beauty for ashes. You turn shame into glory. You turn graves into gardens. You turn bones into armies. You turn seas into highways”. After hearing that I remembered that God is capable of anything, both on the mountain top and in the valley. It doesn’t matter what my past looks like, God holds my future.
A few minutes later I ran past an open gate to a plantation that normally stays closed. It was so tempting to run down that road. Just beyond the open gate, there was a locked gate to this same plantation. It was locked with chains. How many times do you feel locked up by your own chains that God has already unlocked with His grace? I was reminded of the scripture in Revelation 3:7-8; “To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you and open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name”.
Are there areas in your life that you feel broken?
Do you feel that the locked door will never open?
Earlier this week I felt I had failed as a Christian because I was struggling to trust God. Based on the circumstances in front of me, I felt scared. God sent me two God winks through my Bible App with the verse of the day. The first one was from, Ps 56:3; “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you”. Then the very next day it was from Isaiah 41:10; “Don’t be afraid for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged for I am your God”. I knew that those messages were for me.
When I came home from my run, I noticed how beautiful my calla lilies looked in full bloom. They are my favorite flower. In that moment I remembered that God’s goodness still abounds. My story is still being written but I know that God is in control and that he will open and close the right doors for me and my family. I am so thankful for the family and friends God has surrounded me to share life with.
Here are the images from my run! God’s goodness Abounds!
I encourage you to listen to Graves into Gardens by Elevation Worship;
Water Walkers 